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Israel rejects UN, Egypt ceasefire overtures

Israel’s Security Cabinet has instructed the military to continue its operations as necessary, based on briefings by the IDF and security officials.

By Jack Gold, World Israel News

Israel has suspended all ceasefire contacts with the United Nations and Egypt, which have been attempting to forge a ceasefire agreement with Hamas, a senior diplomatic source said Tuesday, according to The Jerusalem Post.

Late Tuesday afternoon, Israel’s Security Cabinet instructed the IDF to continue its operations as necessary, based on briefings by the military and security officials.

The announcement came amid contradicting reports, confirmed by IDF Radio, regarding the prospects of ceasefire talks.

Israel’s south has come under a massive barrage of over hundred of rockets fired by Hamas terrorists from Gaza since Monday evening. One man was killed, while several others were wounded at various locations throughout the south; property and homes were damaged.

The UN and Egypt had been serving as mediators between Israel and Hamas, but Israel has ceased all discussions on the issue as the terrorist group has refused to hold its fire.

The “UN is working closely with Egypt and all concerned to ensure that Gaza steps back from the brink,” Nickolay Mladenov, the UN’s Middle East envoy, tweeted. “The escalation in the past 24hrs is EXTREMELY dangerous and reckless. Rockets must STOP, restraint must be shown by all! No effort must be spared to reverse the spiral of violence.”

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A Western diplomat quoted by the Post reportedly said that these efforts were continuing and that the weeks-long effort to bring calm to the Gaza border were ongoing.

Earlier in the day, Israel’s Ambassador Danny Danon appealed to the UN Security Council to condemn the deadly rocket attacks on innocent civilians and to designate Hamas as a terrorist organization.

“Hamas has fired 400+ rockets into Israeli civilian centers. I call on the #UNSC to condemn Hamas in the strongest terms for its indiscriminate attacks against innocent civilian populations. It is time this body acknowledges and designates #Hamas as a terrorist organization,” he tweeted.